*Falling on His Sword: Colin Powell’s most significant moment turned
Posted by: “hapi22″ hapi22@earthlink.net robinsegg
Sun Oct 1, 2006 10:36 am (PST)
Why are we just NOW starting to learn all of these old stories from The
Washington Post?

For six years, and more, they have covered up for Bush and slanted their
coverage to cover Bush’s butt.

Now, all of a sudden, it is “time” for them to let these stories out?

Why?

Maybe Chris Floyd has the correct answer.

———————————————————-

*Falling on His Sword: Colin Powell’s most significant moment turned out
to be his lowest*

ON WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2004, eight days after the president he
served was elected to a second term, Secretary of State Colin Powell
received a telephone call from the White House at his State Department
office. The caller was not President Bush but Chief of Staff Andrew
Card, and he got right to the point.

“The president would like to make a change,” Card said, using a
time-honored formulation that avoided the words “resign” or “fire.” He
noted briskly that there had been some discussion of having Powell
remain until after Iraqi elections scheduled for the end of January, but
that the president had decided to take care of all Cabinet changes
sooner rather than later. Bush wanted Powell’s resignation letter dated
two days hence, on Friday, November 12, Card said, although the White
House expected him to stay at the State Department until his successor
was confirmed by the Senate.

– – – – – – – – – – – – –
[Photo Caption]
Falling on His Sword
Former Secretary of State Colin Powell played a key role in promoting
and defending the Bush administration’s decision to invade Iraq in 2003.
But in making the case against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, Powell
may have sold his reputation.
– – – – – – – – – – – – –

After four long years, Powell had anticipated the end of his service and
sometimes even longed for it. He had never directly told the president
but thought he had made clear to him during the summer of 2004 that he
did not intend to stay into a second term.

There had been public speculation as the election drew near that the
president might ask the secretary of state to reenlist, at least
temporarily. Powell was still the most popular member of Bush’s team,
far more popular with the public than the president himself. Senior
Powell aides were convinced that the secretary anticipated an invitation
to stay, and they were equally certain that he intended to accept. The
approaching elections in Iraq, hints of progress in the
Israeli-Palestinian peace process and the rumored departure of Defense
Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, a principal Powell nemesis, made the next six
months look like a rare period of promise for diplomacy.